Stephen J. Cannell has taken to heart Raymond Chandler's remark about writing crime fiction. "When in doubt," Chandler advised, "have a man come through a door with a gun in his hand." There are so many bullets flying in The Viking Funeral that readers might be forgiven for missing this author's subtler efforts to fill out the dimensions of his series protagonist, LAPD Detective Shane Scully, introduced in 2001's The Tin Collectors.

Nobody believes Scully when he says he's just seen Jody Dean (his boyhood buddy and former colleague, who supposedly committed suicide two years before) speeding down a freeway. So the detective sets out to prove that Dean is alive, only to fall in with a crew of undercover cops who've slipped their leash and are now running a convoluted money-laundering scheme that ties U.S. tobacco shipments to South American drug barons.

Cannell, the creator of TV series such as The Rockford Filesand Wiseguy, certainly knows how to choreograph an action scene. But his dialogue is occasionally stilted, and The Viking Funeralloses some narrative steam during a lengthy tour of tropical hideouts. The story is at its best in illuminating the deceptive friendship between the emotionally scarred Scully and the arrogant Dean. Fans of The Tin Collectorsshouldn't be disappointed. --J. Kingston Pierce


From Publishers Weekly
Readers willing to check their disbelief at the door will enjoy this latest over-the-top thriller by Cannell (The Tin Collectors). It's been three years since LAPD cop Shane Scully's best friend and fellow cop Jody Dean blew his brains out so what does it mean when Shane spots Jody driving in the next lane on the freeway? Shane's lover, Alexa Hamilton, herself a star in the LAPD, is skeptical of the sighting partly because Shane is undergoing psychiatric treatment until they find her boss dead in a faked suicide with a strange tattoo on his ankle. The tattoo is the symbol used by the Vikings, a group of brutal rogue cops in Jody's unit who were kicked off the force. A two-way radio at Sheperd's home leads Shane to Jody's hiding place, and it turns out he's involved in a lot more than just a rogue gang. Shane stumbles into a huge money-laundering conspiracy involving the cops, Colombian drug cartels and Big Tobacco. But in order to win Jody's trust and save his own life, Shane must betray Alexa. The action intensifies as the rogues, with Shane along with them undercover, face peril trying to keep ahead of murderous drug lords while the bodies pile up. Solid plotting with nail-biting suspense and multiple surprises keep the reader guessing and sweating right up to the cinematic ending. As the creator of such TV series as The Rockford Files and The A Team, Cannell has a knack for character and a bent for drama that will satisfy even the most jaded thrill lover. 10-city author tour. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
Sergeant Shane Scully is back from the best-selling The Tin Collection with a big problem: he spots an old friend and colleague who supposedly committed suicide. It seems that there's a bunch of cops running around who went deep undercover and promptly went bad. Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From AudioFile
When LAPD Sergeant Shane Scully sees Jody Dean, his oldest friend and former partner, behind the wheel of a car on the freeway, he almost loses control of his car. She committed suicide two years earlier. Narrator Dick Hill portrays Scully with a deep, melodious, masculine voice but easily assumes a husky female tone for Alexis, Scully's girlfriend. Transitions from male to female voice, as well as occasional slurred drunken speech, come easy for Hill, who makes each character sound realistic. Drugs, sharp detective work, and high suspense provide a gripping listen as Scully uncovers the truth about six vigilante cops led by the Viking General. Street language may offend some. G.D.W. © AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine


From Booklist
Los Angeles police detective Shane Scully catches a glimpse of his childhood buddy and former partner Jody Dean cruising the freeway. No big deal, except that Dean committed suicide two years earlier in the LAPD parking lot. Scully's fiance, Alexa, also a police officer, assures him he was mistaken, but Scully saw the recognition in the driver's eyes. He becomes even more obsessed when Jody's former commanding officer, just entering retirement, is found murdered. Scully doesn't believe in coincidence and continues to dig until he makes contact. The suicide was a charade; Jody used it to go deep undercover. His assignment was to track the drug money being laundered through some of the country's most respected multinational corporations. Jody insinuated himself into the money trail, but the lure of a $100 million fortune and a serious lack of conscience shattered his link to law enforcement. Shane exploits their history together and ostensibly joins Jody on the other side of the law. Shane's dilemma becomes saving Jody while simultaneously bringing the money launderers to justice. Cannell, winner of four Emmy awards and the author of last year's best-selling Scully caper The Tin Collectors [BKL N 15 00], has penned another winner. Scully is a likable protagonist who struggles with his personal life while staying a step ahead of a disturbed, dangerous adversary. A top-notch thriller with more than a little heart. Wes Lukowsky
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved


Review
"Stephen J. Cannell's The Viking Funeral is the sort of fast and furious read you might expect from one television's most successful and inventive writer-production."--Los Angeles Times

"Cannell's brand of thriller is served straight up and he knows how to cut to the chase."-The New York Times



Review
"Stephen J. Cannell's The Viking Funeral is the sort of fast and furious read you might expect from one television's most successful and inventive writer-production."--Los Angeles Times

"Cannell's brand of thriller is served straight up and he knows how to cut to the chase."-The New York Times



Book Description
If Detective Shane Scully's best friend, Jody Dean, committed suicide three years ago, then who did Shane just see for one fleeting moment on the Ventura Freeway? He's convinced it was his former colleague. Or was his mind playing tricks? Shane's lover, Alexa Hamilton, herself a lauded LAPD officer, happens to think so. But Shane knows what he saw. And for a rogue cop with nothing left to lose, the search for Dean has become more than an investigation. It's become an obsession.

The first clue to Dean's secret life--and suspicious death--is murder. The victim is Dean's former commanding officer. The connection taps into a corrupt, high-level conspiracy among L.A.'s finest that will put Shane and everyone he loves in harm's way. It will cut deep into the heart of betrayal and the meaning of friendship. And it will dare one cop already on the brink of madness to take on step further into darkness...



About the Author
Stephen J. Cannell enjoys one of the most phenomenally successful careers in today's Entertainment Industry. After struggling for recognition as a television writer, Cannell's career took off in 1966 when he became head writer for the series, Adam 12. Thirteen years later, he'd form his own production company; today his studio's annual production outlays amount to more than a billion dollars. In his 35-year career, the Emmy-award winning writer has created over 40 TV series, including such hits as The Rockford Files, The Greatest America Hero, The A-Team, 21 Jump Street, Wifeguy and The Commish. He penned bestsellers The Plan, Final Victim, King Con, Riding The Snake, Devil's Workshop and The Tin Collectors. A spokesperson on dyslexia, Stephen J. Cannell lives in Los Angeles with his wife and their children.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"Driving along the freeway, Shane Scully glances over and sees Jody Dean, his oldest friend and LAPD colleague, at the wheel of an adjacent car. Why is Scully so surprised? Because it's been two years since Jody committed suicide in the Rampart Division parking lot by blowing his brains out with a service revolver. Shane served as a pallbearer at the funeral." "What Scully will discover is that Jody and five other cops who are supposed to be dead are anything but; originally sent deep undercover to bust an extremely violent criminal network, they have become the LAPD's worst nightmare. Calling themselves the Vikings, they are rogue cops who know how the system works. In order to penetrate the group and set his cover, Scully is supposed to shoot his fiancee, Alexa. The setup goes awry and Shane finds himself looking down at his future wife's body. He is soon driven into the corridors of near-madness and into the bed of an extremely beautiful and utterly ruthless corporate seductress who threatens to destroy his soul." Shane's frightening undercover journey takes him from the embrace of Alexa and his teenage son, Chooch, to the Caribbean Island of Aruba and to the decadence of Colombia's opulent palaces and the desperation of its deadly streets. Sergeant Scully is driven to the psychological brink, his life in the hands of the most dangerous killer he's ever known - his closest childhood friend.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Readers willing to check their disbelief at the door will enjoy this latest over-the-top thriller by Cannell (The Tin Collectors). It's been three years since LAPD cop Shane Scully's best friend and fellow cop Jody Dean blew his brains out so what does it mean when Shane spots Jody driving in the next lane on the freeway? Shane's lover, Alexa Hamilton, herself a star in the LAPD, is skeptical of the sighting partly because Shane is undergoing psychiatric treatment until they find her boss dead in a faked suicide with a strange tattoo on his ankle. The tattoo is the symbol used by the Vikings, a group of brutal rogue cops in Jody's unit who were kicked off the force. A two-way radio at Sheperd's home leads Shane to Jody's hiding place, and it turns out he's involved in a lot more than just a rogue gang. Shane stumbles into a huge money-laundering conspiracy involving the cops, Colombian drug cartels and Big Tobacco. But in order to win Jody's trust and save his own life, Shane must betray Alexa. The action intensifies as the rogues, with Shane along with them undercover, face peril trying to keep ahead of murderous drug lords while the bodies pile up. Solid plotting with nail-biting suspense and multiple surprises keep the reader guessing and sweating right up to the cinematic ending. As the creator of such TV series as The Rockford Files and The A Team, Cannell has a knack for character and a bent for drama that will satisfy even the most jaded thrill lover. 10-city author tour. (Jan.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

Sergeant Shane Scully is back from the best-selling The Tin Collection with a big problem: he spots an old friend and colleague who supposedly committed suicide. It seems that there's a bunch of cops running around who went deep undercover and promptly went bad. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

AudioFile

LAPD Sergeant Shane Scully is fresh off a case for which his girlfriend, Alexa, a rising star in the department, received the Medal of Valor while he received a psychiatric evaluation. When Shane runs into his best friend, who committed suicide two years previously, he sets in motion an investigation that will lead to a money-laundering scheme involving crooked cops, American tobacco shipments, and South American drug lords. The fast pace of this rollicking drama is hampered by poor sound quality. Dick Hill's high, breathy female voices are sufficient without making them overly soft. Hill has a wonderful knack for accents, but the overall quality of the production suffers when the volume drops at crucial moments. E.J.F. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews